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Sunday, March 16

The last time I saw Eliot Spitzer, he encouraged me to write about his work involving prostitution. So here goes.

The governor buttonholed me because he wanted credit for passage of a tough state law against sex trafficking. Frankly, he deserves credit, for the law took the innovative step of cracking down on johns by increasing penalties.

The big worry now among those working to stop trafficking is that the Spitzer scandal will add to perceptions of prostitution as a “victimless crime.” On my blog, www.nytimes.com/ontheground, one person named “Carmen” argued, “if a man can hire a pro to help improve his golf, why not let him hire a pro to help improve his sex?”

Another poster, who identified herself as a former prostitute in Australia, said she had “never felt exploited or trapped” and added, “It was one of the best jobs I’ve ever had.”

Yet the evidence is overwhelming that, in the United States, prostitution is only very rarely just another career choice. Studies suggest that up to two-thirds of prostitutes have been sexually abused as girls, a majority have drug dependencies or mental illnesses, one-third have been threatened with death by pimps, and almost half have attempted suicide.

Melissa Farley, a psychologist who has written extensively about the subject, says that girls typically become prostitutes at age 13 or 14. She conducted a study finding that 89 percent of prostitutes urgently wanted to escape the work, and that two-thirds have post-traumatic stress disorder — not a problem for even the most frustrated burger-flipper.

The mortality data for prostitutes is staggering. The American Journal of Epidemiology published a meticulous study finding that the “workplace homicide rate for prostitutes” is 51 times that of the next most dangerous occupation for women, working in a liquor store. The average age of death of the prostitutes in the study was 34.

135 comments:

I have to say, the approach at which i agree the most would have to be cracking down on the pimps and the customers.The prostitutes having been getting arrested for years and it has not lowered the number of prositutes, nor the number of arresting of prostitutes. The women probably feel like the have no other choice, and will obviously pay the cost of being sent to jail in order to make what money they can. However if you arrest the person whom is buying the sex; then this type of person probably has never been to jail, and will more then likely abide by the law that affects he/she personally.

Even though I believe prostitution is immoral and unethical, if I had to choose an approach, it would have to be the Swedish one. By cracking down on lewd pimps and customers, more prostitutes would become insolvent from losing customers. It is illogical to believe that prostitution will ever dwindle, but by the help of a law decriminalizing the sale of sex, but criminalizing the purchase of it, obliterates the desire to even become a prostitute. Not saying that young women have a dream to become a prostitute, but many turn their backs on reality and find prostitution as an easy way out. By limiting this so-called "occupation", prostitution, I think will become more of an impoverished livelihood rather than a prosperous one.

This is a very controversial topic and my mind is set pretty well on this one. From a moral stand point, I think that prostitution is quite trashy and if it was up to me, I would eliminate it from reality. However, I am also a realist and like the article said it's one of the world's oldest professions. So I don't think it can be eliminated no matter how hard the government cracks on it. I am pro government legalizing it and administering it.If that is done, that means the government can regulate it and even make a profit out of it. If I was to be a customer of a prostitute, I would be more willing to work with one that is government inspected and not one off the street that has high possibilities of having all types of sexually transmitted diseases.

I really do not agree with either approach but I lean more towards legalization. For the simple reason that if it is legalized then it is safer,strictly from a public health/ disease stand point. The majority of street walking prostitutes are not victims of human trafficking, most of those women are put to work in illegal brothels or as phone order escorts. So cracking down on street level prostitution really won’t do anything about human trafficking. Also, by making one's own city or country an inhospitable environment for the importation of trafficking victims your are only stopping the problem in your city or country, those people will still be kidnapped or somehow enticed into slavery only they will be taken to another part of the world. Sadly, there is a global market for that sort of commodity in our world and I feel that it is irresponsible to try to stop it on one end when we should really be looking at and trying to correct the circumstances and conditions that are causing human trafficking in Eastern Europe in the first place. In addition, if you are going to bust the people, buying sex you should also bust the people selling it just to be fair; the johns would not be out there if the hookers were not also.

I strongly agree that we should prosecute the pimps and the prostitutes. The customer may think twice of the punishment and embarrassment prior to engaging in the act if the focus was to prosecute the customer. Many of the customers are husbands, fathers, politicians, executives, and the list goes on. Individuals who have a lot on the line to loose if they were prosecuted for hiring a prostitute. If the demand slows the prostitutes will be forced to find another line of work. Although we would like to think that if we legalize prostitution, enforcing taxes this would make it safer, that is not true. Unfortunately, we will never completely get rid or prostitution, crime or illegal drugs we have to find a way to reduce the activity.

Well in my opinion in prostitution is pretty low. Prostitution goes against any moral I was ever tought. On the other hand as stated in the article prostituion is one of the oldest profesions. If it were to be legalized atleast it would help to prevent the spread of stds and hiv/aids. If the government were to legalize prostitution atleast with they will be observed by the government.

If cracking down on customers and pimps works I am all for it. You can't stop prostitution. I imagine some women get desperate and try to sell the only thing they may have so it will always be out there. I also wish there was some way to require prostitutes to get some sort of license that they have to keep up. I know that they said legalizing caused a problem but I think you will still struggle with the pubescent issue irregardless. At least if woman are required to have check ups all the time they have a better chance of not catching and spreading aids. I don't like the concept at all, its morally wrong but you have to work with what you have and I think the govt. should take a stronger action on trying to regulate more of these types of issues. Clean up your own pond before you worry about someone else's so to speak.

Trafficking is huge business in Asia and the Pacific.In Cambodia, in the province of Battambang, as many as 80% of the 236 women in prostitution interviewed were found to have been trafficked. Thirty percent of the women in prostitution in Cambodia were below the age of 17.

When women are trapped into trafficking, the pimp starts charging them for all sort of expenses and thus they accumulate a debt towards him. By the time they arrive in Japan, most trafficked Thai women had accumulated a debt of $25,000.

In 1995 it was estimated that revenues from prostitution made up60% of Thailand's budget.

It is hard to find statistics on the association between prosstitution and STDs. The sources are often unknowns at best and they may say anyhting they like. The only reliable source that I ahd a found, is a pile of medical articles published in peer-review journals that show the pros and cons on the question of legalization as pertinents to STDs.I copy one pro and one conPro

"Prostitutes overwhelmingly work outside the law. This has implications for their health that are hard to quantify. In one Australian study carried out in 1998, the prevalence of sexually transmitted bacterial infections was 80 times greater in 63 illegal street prostitutes than in 753 of their legal brothel counterparts.... Legally sanctioned encouragement of prostitutes to use condoms or access screening services, both major determinants of the prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases, is impossible because of their illegal status. Occupational health and safety law is applied to prostitutes in lawful brothels but not to their counterparts on the street."

Con

In 1986, the Victorian Labour government [Victoria, Australia] legalized brothels, claiming crime would be eliminated, prostitutes' lives would be made safer, and there would be fewer health risks. None of this happened.

...Sexually transmitted diseases (STD) and AIDS increased. This was due to the fact that medical authorities examined only one of the partners in the sex act, which was self-defeating. Also, favourable medical results provided a false sense of security to clients, prostitutes and controllers. Medical examinations also provoked hostility and decreased cooperation from prostitutes who moved around too often to be monitored. If one did become infected with a sexually transmitted disease, another prostitute would replace her for the medical check up, using the infected woman's medical card."

One study that I found that seems to be solidly based from a research point of view about trafficked women in the US is here

Besides the STDs that are found in the majority of trafficked women in the US, they also suffer from serious injuries. The authors have reported:

Although a number of studies in the medical and social science literature investigate the rates ofHIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) of certain populations of women in prostitution,there has been no focus on the larger health consequences to women who have been trafficked andprostituted. International and U.S. women suffered severe health consequences from the injuriescaused by violence and diseases contracted while in the sex industry. Many women sustained injuries,such as broken bones, bruises, and cuts requiring stitches. Almost half of the U.S. women (47%)reported head injuries. Thirty-six percent of the international woman and 53 percent of the U.S.women reported mouth and teeth injuries. Fifty-six percent of the U.S. women required emergencyroom treatment for injuries and illnesses sustained while in the sex industry.Most of the women contracted sexually transmitted infections while in the sex industry.

Although I would never consider being a prostitute and I have never known someone that was a prostitute I feel as though we should follow the approach of the Neatherlands and make it legal, get rid of the pimps, because they are the ones that are being abusive and just money hungry. Also, if we make it legal, like Nevada is right now, and give them a safe place to stay, pay them, tax them, and test them for STD's or AIDS it would be better for just about everyone involved. All accross the country prostitutes get arrested and go back to the streets to make their money because they either have to or have no other options. With the government spending too much money to arrest these people and put them in jail for like one night and for basicly nothing to change.

I do not think that there is any one perfect approach to dealing with prostitution. It seems like it is an institution that will spring up where ever there are people and currency. I do however think that Sweden's approach to the situation may be the best choice, because it is seeing the most positive results. My theory before was that if it is going to happen anyway, the state should legalize it, so they would be able to better censor it. Until I had read this article and learned thereal statistics, I thought that what was being in the Netherlands was the best choice. Now I think Sweden's approach of prosecuting the customers, not the prostitutes, is the best way to handle prostitution since it seems to be working better than any other solutions.

Even thought I belive that you have the right to do whatever you want with your body and that if we do legalize prostitution the number of std's will go down ,I dont agree with legalizing prostitution. I cant except the fact that no matter how many positive things come from leagalizing prostitution the message that we will be sending to young girls that its ok to sell your body for sex. I dont think it matters whether your an expesive prositute or working on the bunny ranch being a prostitute is not perfession and I hate that we call it that.By legalizing prostitution we are also saying that getting an education is to challenging and working at a job is so hard that sex is the only other thing we have to offer as women. We should not encourage this because it is immoral and we are also encouraging married men who seek out prostitues to do so with out any consequnces.I understand that we have prostitution going on now but at least we arent saying it ok for this to be an occupation .

I agree with with Shaunda and I like the approach that Sweden experimented with in 1999. Radical yet successful the swedish decriminalized the sale of sex but made it a crime to buy sex. I especially like that the policy was to arrest customers, but NOT the prostitutes!

I think prosistition is definately inevitable so it should be legalized. If it was legal ,then it would be regulated and therefore reduce child prostitution, AIDS and sexually transmitted disease.

The approach that I agree with the most is catching the pimps and the customers. If it wasnt for them there would be less prostitution and less crimes involving prostitution. Pimps are the bosses and they support it one hundred percent because it supports their lifestyle. The customers are the ones that buy sex and are to blame aswell. If there was not a need for it there would be no prostitution. If we were to crack down on pimps and customers it would minimize prositution crimes extremely.

I think prostitution is terrible. It is unhealthy,unethical and immoral. I do not support any attempt to legalize this disgusting problem. I feel that we should enforce the law and make the punishment harsher for the prostitute, the customer and the guy who advertises the girls. If these women knew they wouldn't be getting out of jail with a slap on the wrist and a little court fine they would take the law more seiously. The same thing goes for the people who pay for their services. I don't see how legalizing it on a large scale would be effective. You're still going to have those people who dont take the time to get a permit to be a legal prostitute and those who dont want to be subjected to frequent STD tests. Would that even be cheaper on a large scale to test thousands of prostitutes weekly or monthly than it would be to arrest them and heavily fine them? This is not a way of life that should in any way be supported or legalized. I think it would be way to hard and extremely expensive to manage and safeguard on a national or global level. I do not support prostitution in any way.

I agree that the Swedish system does have a somewhat positive effect on the situation, but I think legalizing Brothels along with it would be the best approach. Out on the street, they can be arrested. In a brothel, they can be deemed legal. Of course restrictions must be placed, and security measures taken. Give them extra bouncers and trigger buttons for the prostitutes when they find themselves in distress. Heck, let the bouncer stand in the room with them. Either way you go, the profession will always live on; sex sells! If you really want to demolish it, you'd have to fight every aspect of pop culture today, and even those affects wouldn't be seen for one or two more generations. You just have to go with the flow and work with what you have. Fight fire with fire.

In my opinion I agree with the Swedish approach. It obviously is working. Although there is never going to be one perfect solution, if you look at the research you will see that that way is working the best. Its sad to hear about the fatalities involved in this business. I was under the impression that if you are a prostitute that it was your decision. But, some girls are forced into this at a young age, and its not fair to punish them. I agree with punishing the people that are helping this business thrive. That is why I agree with the Swedens in punishing the customers.

Cracking down on pimps and the customers may not do any good just like it doesn't do any good when a prositute gets arrested and is back on the streets. If there were no pimps,prositution will still be in effect for customers. The same way of being an (h..) you dont have to have a pimp to be one of them. So I dont agree with neither approach for prositution it's going to be there no matter what on the street or in the home. No one can stop fast money.

The method that I like the most is the one that Sweden came up with. I mean anyone could have come up with that solution but only the Swedes actually put into action. The one thing that doesn’t really make any sense to me is that, in especially in the U.S., people actually arrest the prostitutes instead of the people who are paying for them. That is pretty much useless because the jails only keep them for a couple of hours and then the next day they are right back on the street! Waste of time and money! But actually arresting those who pay for prostitutes cut down on prostitution actually taking place. It amazes me how most countries, especially the U.S. hasn’t caught up on this method.

This is a tough topic on several different levels. I do not think arresting the johns is a good idea because some of these men are desperate for the attention of a woman. They seek out prostitutes to pay to get that attention that they can not get anywhere else. If we take away prostitution who knows what some of these men may do to get what they want. I think legalizing it may cut down on stds. There is a county in Nevada that has been very successful with several brothels. If the government could come up with a way to regulate where and how many brothels the U.S. could have, this may also help keep human trafficking down. I also think the government needs to look into and help solve some of the issues prostitutes have that lead them into the business in the first place. Poverty, drug addiction, and sexual abuse are probably some of the biggest and most common causes. I think instead of arresting the prostitutes the government should create some type of rehabilitation center for these women (and occasionally men) to give them some tools to go back into society and rebuild their lives. So the money they spend on stings and arresting they should use to help these people. Just as drugs are addicting, so is sex.

With the fact that I don't agree with prostitution, I would rather choosing the Netherlands approach and make it legal than cracking down on the pimps and the customers. That way is safer for both sides. I think it should be legalized, because then it can be regulated. It would hopefully get them off the streets into safe, clean environments, cutting down on being beaten & raped, both by pimps & johns. They would be required to undergo regular checkups & use protections –safer for both prostitute & customer. Hopefully, it would cut down on the number of women being forced into the sex trade unwillingly

I would like to see prostitution eliminated completely; however, I understand the it is one of the “worlds oldest professions” as the article said, so this will more than likely never happen. If I had to choose one approach it would be the Swedish, cracking down on pimps and customers. I do not believe that legalization will solve anything because if legalized it will spread all over the United States and so will diseases and child prostitution as well. Also, those that do not agree with this “profession” will be forced to live with this legalization. It would even destroy many families because if some ones spouse agrees with it and the other does not that could cause a huge problem.

I believe that prostitution is something that has always been around and always will be around no matter how society tackles the problem. I believe that out of all of the approaches discussed in the article I most agree with the one that penalizes the pimps and the customers; however, I believe that there should also be consequences for the prostitute. The article clearly showed that legalizing it in some countries did not ease the problem of child prostitution or trafficking, and I feel that legalizing it will not solve any of the problems associated with it. A prostitute being tested for HIV every sixth months is not a bullet proof way of ensuring that she won’t contract it and pass it on in between testing.

I think that prostitution is wrong for many reasons. But if it was legalized it would be much safer. People wouldn’t have to roam the streets. There would be no more pimps. The government would be able to make a profit from it. There would also be less diseases going around, because if it was legal the government would probley have mandatory health check ups. Prostitution is still wrong, but i think if we legalized it there would be less crime and diseases.

I believe that if a woman wants to sell her body because that is all she can do, then let her work at a brothel that has a good pack of security to ensure safety. As for the pimps that sell women on the street, arrest them. In my opinion, pimps have no excuses for being brainless. Too many women are killed or injured because of prostitution and it needs to be stopped. This is why we need to arrest the pimps and protect the women.

I do not agree with prostitution. I believe it should not exist. However, like the article said it is the world’s oldest occupation and it cannot be taken away completely. If I had to choose the method of who to arrest, I would choose that of the Swedes. Buying sex should be illegal. It may not be the girl’s fault to become a prostitute. There is trafficking out there, along with other issues such as: being poor and abused. Prostitutes should not go to jail for what they know best with. It is not right to consider someone a criminal just because you think the career choice is “immoral.” Those who are sexually stimulated by the idea of one-night stands with these women are the actual criminals and should be punished.

I agree with the legalization of prostitution because it is much safer and it works out for everyone. there is less violence and murders on these women as well as not spreading diseases like H.I.V. Another good thing is that the state can profit off of it with taxes. The only people it is bad for is pimps and other illegal organizations which will put them out of business causing less crime. Prostitution didn't start out with raggy looking women on the side of the road. It started as a business with classy women and it should be like that again.

I agree the most with the approach with busting down on the pimps and customers. On the other hand I also think that you should be arrested if you sell your body to but if you are going to arrest them atleast do something that will help them instead of just arresting them and letting them go with nothing so they just wind up doing over and over. Before letting them out they should go get some counsling and some education so the prostitutes can get a decent job.

I can't make any sense out of Sweden making purchasing sex illegal while not prosecuting those who are selling it. If the idea is that the practice overall is bad, then all involved parties are wrongdoers, not just the one making the purchase. That's like saying it's alright to sell drugs, but anyone who buys them is a criminal and we need to crack down on them, while leaving the dealer alone. Don't get me wrong, I understand the theory, that by robbing the suppliers of their demand the business will fold, but it doesn't work like that. Demand does not disappear because a law is passed. If it did, the war on drugs would have been over a long time ago. I certainly agree that where prostitution is illegal, the customers are guilty of breaking the law, but I can't see focusing only on them as being fair or accomplishing more than prosecuting both sides.

I realized after reading my first post that I was addressing the issue from a point of view that considered only adults. Human trafficking and underage prostitution are deplorable practices. In these cases, I do agree with the idea of actively pursuing those who are running these operations and those who are purchasing these services. I guess my overall view of prostitution depends on the age of those involved. If an adult wants to pay another adult for sex I really don't care, but children being sold into this life is something that does need to be ended, and I do think those types of pimps and the customers deserve to be prosecuted.

I feel that the approach we need to take is taking down the pimps and customers. Most of the time when people think of prostitution they only think of the prostitutes and thats not right most of the time they are being pushed to do it by pimps, and the money they make from the customers. If the government would crack down and take control of the customers and pimps then there would be less business and less of a chance for prostitutes to make money.

I believe that the best approach is cracking down the pimps and the customers because if the prostitutes wanted out of the business they would of already got out of it so what's holding them back? The fact that they have been getting aressested for years and there has been an increase in prostitutes over the past few years that it seems that its not ever going to change by going the other way. I believe that punishing the pimps and the customers will show them that what they are doing is wrong and that they will see that a prostitute is a human being as well and should be treated as one and not a sex toy. It will also help the prostitutes who love their job feel more comfortable and safer doing it knowing that the pimps and the customers are being punished for the wrong doing.

I would say the approach i would agree with is the seedish one. I believe if there are no customers to buy a product then eventually the product will disappear. Yet at the same time if prostitution was made legal then we could do the same thing as the dutch and tax and regulate the going on's of prostitution. This will cut down on the spread of aids and others diseases and also child prostitution will be completely stopped. "pimps and customers" should be the people held responsible for the sale of sex not so much the prostitute. Tax the sale of sex extremly high if it is legalized and if its not then arrested more customers and pimps to limit the number of prostitutes in demand.

I don’t really agree with any of the approaches. I don’t think there’s any particular approach towards prostitution that will be accepted. I suppose the Swedish approach is somewhat best when trying to decrease the prostitution rate. However, I think it's ridiculous to legalize the sale of sex, yet arrest the buyer. The double standard just doesn’t make sense. I think prostitution should be legal; its equivalent to pornography; which is regulated with STD and HIV/AIDS testing, pays both parties and taxes both parties. I don’t agree that prostitution is immoral in any way and if it were legalized the rates that give prostitution its trashy name would be decreased immensely.

I am not ok with any of these approches; I am 100% against prostitution and the people who pay for anytype of sexual act. There are several medical and phsycological problems with this "profession.(I would classify these people as Career Criminals)" My main issues are 1. It is a very dangerous job and the prostitutes can be killed or hurt at anytime doing their "workday." 2. Most prostitutes are and if not will carry some type of STD or AIDs. 3. This is not a job this is a very demoralizing unmoral "career".

I would agree that prostitution is illegal but at the same time pornstar is not and you get paid, expolited around the world, famous in a day for the average model. If you want it to go away you enforce the law within the state first but most importantly you attack gangs/mobs. It is the oldest profession but if it lasted this long chances are its going to last forever because there is always some politican that loves those girls and want to work with the evil individuals whom make it possible for the politican to have affairs. Also if the average women within the state cannot find a decent job and the governers staff sees that through statistics then they would improve that day first then work with the issue I brought earlier. In all it is a tragedy that we have these problems but at the same time when you have pornstars making money and showing it to the world, what is the difference? You cannot tell me that one is for sexual education and other isn't?

I as a woman do not agree with prostitution. I think it is discriminating. I have known women that were sexually abused and found other ways of going about their life. If it were up to me I would love to do away with it. Prostitution is always going to be around no matter what. I believe it would be better off legalized for the simple fact of the women would have to be tested. If you look at statistics the STD rates are outrageous and really scary. We don’t need more men and women passing what they have around. I think every prostitute should be tested and made sure they are clean when put out on the streets. The testing would benefit them and also their customers. It would really be challenging to legalize it because there will be the idea out there for young women not to finish school. There would be people out there talking about how great the money is and why finish school when you can make quick and easy money. All you have to do is raise your kid’s right. Children will know about it either way; however, if it was legalized I think they would know more about the topic. I also think should do away with the pimps because they are just going to abuse them and treat them even worse. I do not agree with the job but who am I to say what goes on. I feel bad that women choose that for a lifestyle and don’t try and do something better with their lives.

I would be inclined to agree with the Swedish approach. I would, however, agree fully with none of them. I believe in all cases that prostitution is wrong. It may be true that we need to ask the lesser-of-two-evils question. But why stop working for the ideal?

Think about it in the college context: If working through legislation and community efforts against prostitution were like working towards an ambitious degree, we would all say something like, “why not shoot for the stars?” “Why not get a degree that challenges you and stretches your talent?”

But, no, we generally look for the easiest, cheapest approach possible. It’s sad to me to be witness to this demoralization of societies. We’ve become more concerned with damage control than we are with working as a nation to eradicate those practices which are morally wrong.

Ok, like all of the issues that we discuss on this blog, I agree and disagree with some of this. I think that the prostitutes, the pimps, and the customers should all be cracked down on. But I also think that if the profession was not illegal, that more women would be getting annual check ups and have STD screenings. Like the article said, prostitution is the world's oldest profession. I really don't think that it is going to go anywhere, so I think we should make due and try to make it a little more safer. The article mentioned that these women work in a really dangerous environment. Well, they put themselves in that environment. If someone did not want to be in a dangerous situation, they would avoid it.

I think prostitution is probably one of the most disgusting "jobs" anyone can have. I have always heard if you try at something hard and long enough you succeed, so when someone says that they "couldn't find any other way of income," I find it a bit funny.

I really can't find ANY excuse for it. At all. I know in class today, Mrs. Smith said that Thailand (I believe) prostitution makes up 40% of the income. 40%. Wow. Thats kind of sad.

I just can't find an appeal to any aspect of prostitution.

"Hey! Who wants to have sex with someone who's had sex 100's of times!?"

I struggled with responding to this, because I feel that prostitution is disgusting. But it will always be a part of life. However, if I were going to be a customer of prostitution, I imagine I would much rather buy sex from a controlled source. Because then it seems a little bit safer. The prositutes would be on welfare, and std testing would be provided for them. When someone buys sex off the street, they are opening themselves up to a variety of diseases. Prostitution in my opinion, is morally wrong. But in extreme cases, I understand why some women do it.

To continue with STD among our teenagers, it was reported only last week that:"...one in four young women, ages 14 to 19, are infected with at least one of the Big Four sexually transmitted diseases: HPV, chlamydia, genital herpes and a common parasite called trichomoniasis.

The numbers break down like this: Almost half of black teens and 20 percent of white girls are infected. Among the infected women, 15 percent had more than one of these diseases."

I believe the abstinence-only program has cost us 1.5 billion. All up in smoke....

I agree with the approach were they are penalizing the pimps and costumers. Because this approach is diminishing the popularity of prostitutions. However, it is a good attempt but I don't think it will ever died. There are many women now who are sleeping with every guy they meet with in minutes which i think it is a form of prostitution but it is for free so, therefore men can still get away with it. Also, I feel sometime women prostitue themselves because of deseperate means for instances, a woman may done it to provide food and shelter for child if not getting any help from their child's father, the government or family. I do not judge people because of what they do because I know their is a reason behind every decision someone make.

There is no reason to pick one over the other. It is an endless cycle. It’s kind of pointless to arrest just the customers over the prostitutes, because that means the prostitutes are still there. If you arrest just the prostitutes, then the people that “need” them will find others to do the job. I am in opposition to any kind of prostitution. It’s disgusting and I have no respect for people affiliated with it.

“I'm doing you a favorAs I'm taking all your moneyI guess I should feel sorryBut I don't even trust meThere's bad news creeping upAnd you feel a sudden chillHow do you do? My name is 'Trouble'I'm coming in for the killAnd you know I will…”

I believe that prostitution is not the right choice for anybody,but its obious that girls do it for money.I agree with the cracking down on pimps and customers. It seems that it would be the best choice. But also i think it would help many of this girls if there was some kind of program in which they recieved therapy, because like it has been said many had very hard times in the past. But still i do not agree with prostitution, this just take a womens value away and many men might think that women are not worth anything. Besides, are they ever going to be happy, i mean money can give you many things, but what about death?

I do not agree with selling your body. Yes it is your property but prostitution is in my opinion immoral. Arresting the prostitutes and placing them in jail will not greatly effect anything. This option still does not provided another option for a career. If educated enough for a different job many prostitutes may take the chance to escape the world they are in. The article states that many prostitutes in the US attempt suicide to get out of that world, why not provided a better option? The men or women who are using these prostitutes can normally go on with their daily lives. These people need to be arrested as well. If an upright businessman is placed into jail it becomes a reality shock and may discourage the actions for a period of time. As for the pimps, they cause many young girls to stay as prostitutes with the threat of death all for the love of money. Taking away these pimps may allow many people to escape prostitution and do something else with their lives. Like I stated before I do not believe in prostitution I believe there are other ways to get out of poverty and other choices in life.

I don't think prostitution is rigt but the Swedish approach worked. This is oldest professon nothing really can be done to stop prositution. This approach basically keep it out the public eye. Only people who are involved with prositution will have to deal with it.

Although the law prosecutes equally the prostitute as well as the client, the latter part is rarely enforced. Among the arrests on prostitution, 80% concentrate on the prostitute and 20% on the client (mainly if he is violent). I believe the best example is the latest case with Governor Spitzer. Top legal minds paraded on TV to assure us that he will not be prosecuted for soliciting because the law is simply not enforced. If there are going to be any charges, those will focus on the allegedly illegal financial transactions.

Even though I believe prostitution is immoral and unethical, if I had to choose an approach, it would have to be the Swedish one. It is illogical to believe that prostitution will ever dwindle, but by the help of a law decriminalizing the sale of sex, but criminalizing the purchase of it, obliterates the desire to even become a prostitute. From a moral stand point, I think that prostitution is quite trashy and if it was up to me, The customer may think twice of the punishment and embarrassment prior to engaging in the act if the focus was to prosecute the customer. Many of the customers are husbands, fathers, politicians, executives, and the list goes on. Individuals who have a lot on the line to loose, they were prosecuted for hiring a prostitute.

I do not think prostitution should be legalized like in Sweden. The law should be "cracking down on the pimps and the customers." I know that it will probably never go away, but making it legal will just make people feel like it is okay to do and partake in...and it isn't. This is like saying that all types of drugs are legal..it would not make them okay to take. They are still unhealthy just like prostitution. Why open the door for a job people degrade themselves by? It just does not seem right to me.

I think in the Unites States, even though i disagree with it, we should legalize prostitution. If we legalize it tax it and test the prostitutes, i think it would be a huge money making industry. I also believe it is a lot easier to monitor trafficking and child prostitution in the United States than in any other country. I disagree with the Swedish method, if you are just going to arrest one side of the problem it will never stop, arrest both sides and come down strongly on both sides, that will reduce prostitution dramatically. I would have to say this is one of my few liberal views.

Prostitution is something that will never go away. I feel as though the people in the business who are doing it illegally should get punished. If they don’t want to get caught they should go to Nevada where it is legal. I don’t think it should be legalized because more customers will feel like it’s okay to pay for sex. I think it should stay illegal because then it is less talked about and less seen in communities. If the prostitutes don’t want to get caught they should go somewhere where it is legal.

In no way do I believe that any approach towards prostitution is the “right” choice, besides no prostitution at all. I think that making it legal to sell it, but not to buy it is wrong. How are you going to say that it is okay to sell your body for sex, but it is wrong for someone to consume it? I think that legalizing it is wrong. I understand that women in different countries, even here in America, honestly know no better. Even with that being said, prostitution is wrong. God forbid I would have to choose which “approach” I would take, it would be the legalization approach, because of the lower rates of STD’s.

I think that in MOST cases the girl is not really willing to have sex with up to twenty random men she has never met on her own free will while probobly not seeing much of the money being paid for her "services". I think that by arresting more pimps and johns to get them off the streets would help more than arresting prostitutes. The customers will be scared of getting caught by their spouses or embarressing their families. If you go and arrest a prostitute and keep her in jail for a few hours, her pimp will bail her out and have her working the streets again the minute she is free. How does this help anything?

The approach that I agree for this topic would be to crack down the pimps and customers, because we can not only blame and arrest the prostitutes for their "occupation". The other days I read an article about "Why is porn legal while prostitution is a crime?" in one of local newspaper. It sounds ridiculous for me and maybe for some people too. Every time a politician is caught with an expensive prostitute, we have asked why laws do not treat pornography and prostitution the same way.What does make porn and prostitution different?. It said that having sex on camera for an adult film generally won't get prostitute in trouble, but doing it with a john is illegal everywhere except in parts of Nevada.All of this above, I have to say it is rely on how the law will resolve this case. One more, the article said the prostitution vs porn question will go to trial this spring in a pending Florida case if somebody fascinated with this topic.

This subject is a very sensitive one,i would have to go with cracking down on the pimps and buyers because thats all ive seen on tv ironicaly they catch the people trying to buy the sex from the prostitue, also if the lady cant get another job how is she going to make money. This is somtimes a last choice for women even thoguh it is a very bad one, if it was possible maybe they could make an outreach program to help these women back on there feet and get a real job not exploiting themsleves.

I have mixed feelings regarding prostitution because my greatest influence, the bible, has mixed feelings. The first instance that I can recall is the Sodomites who try to have Lot give up his Malakim guests by offering him all sorts of goods. Their motive in this case was to persuade Lot to break the law of hospitality so that the Sodomites could rape the Malakim.

The next case which I can recall readily is the situation in which the Midianites send temple prostitutes amongst the israelites to spread a horrible disease. The situation comes to a head when one of the tribal leaders brings his Midianite whore to the tent of the meeting and shows her off before going to his tent to do the usual thing. Pinchas Aka Phineas goes into the tent and spears them both to death, God then lifts the plague. Subsequently the israelites are mobilized and commit a most unmerciful genocide on the Midianites.

The last situation which I can recall is the instance wherein a woman married to a man of Judah is widowed when her husband dies. Childless, her husband's brother is sent to her to give her a child for her brother. This child would be treated as the dead brother's son, and receive the inheritence of the rich and prosperous Judah family. The brother "pulls out" with the intent of getting the inheritance himself, and God kills him for this. A widow again, the poor women takes the guise of a prostitute, gets the head of the Judah family to have sex with her, takes his marked staff as collateral. Pregnant, she returns to their assembly and shows Judah's staff, and her pregnant self, claiming that her son will be the new heir.

These three situations bring me to the simple conclusion that prostitution should not be viewed entirely as a bad thing, but it should be taken in context. Sometimes it's the only way for a woman to get by, other times it's a form of slavery, and other times it is abused and turned into a form of extreme decadence. It is my firm opinion that only widowed men and women have the right to explore sexual freedom outside of the constraints of marrying before having sex.

Even though I believe that both of the approaches can work I think that the approach to legalize and regulate prostitution is a better one. I don't think there will ever be a time when prostitution is not used, therefore I think cracking down on the customers may reduce demand, but will not kill it. Then when you have prostitution done illegally and "underground" it causes a much more dangerous world for the prostitutes. If they legalize it and regulate it I think it can be much more successful, with much less violence. Also I think that what they do in Europe, where the prostitutes have to get frequent check-ups for STD's to keep their license would help to reduce STD's in the United States.

I agree with the Swedish plan to crack down on the pimps and customers. Unfortunately it will take years and a full proof solution to end prostitution. Society looks down on such behaviors but how can one take any talk of change seriously when the people who make the rules are the ones braking them. This just shows me that society can believe in one word, we must always question or selves and most of all, the leaders of our nation. Prostitution is something that society had condemned and whatever methods are used to remove prostitution, they must be firm and strict, because it is a battle that will not be one easily.

I personal fell prostitution is unethical and very dangerous to the individuals involved. A career such as prostitution is detrimental to the prostitute’s physical and mental health. It is also an additive cause to the rising spread of sexually transmitted diseases. I think this career needs to be put to a stop. But how is the question. To be effective all parties with in prostitution should be targeted with punishment when caught being involved with this career. We must punish and target the pimps, prostitutes and costumers. Hit the unethical behavior from all angles in order to put the career to an end.

I am for the legalization of prostitution. If it is happening in the U.S. and in almost every country around the world how can we successfully combat it? We have tried to fight a war against a similar “evil” know as drugs, and we can all see how far the war on drugs has gotten us. I feel if we do try and totally eradicate prostitution we will be spending money, and lots of it, on a futile cause. One of the posters on the author’s blog said it was one of her best jobs. If it becomes legal than doctors can regularly check the women for any dangerous diseases, and our jails can stop being filled with simple guys who are desperate for sex and maybe give them a ticket. I can compare it to all the kids in jail now for a gram of pot. It’s a waste of space, money and, our time. If we want to lower our VERY high crime rate maybe we would stop locking people up for victimless crimes.

To decriminalize the sale of sex but make it a crime to buy sex. In effect, to arrest customers, but not the prostitutes, is what Sweden tried to do. I do not think that is the fix we should keep prostitution illegal and arrest prostitutes their pimps and their customers. Prostitution is degrading dangerous, and risky. They can be beat up, raped, abused and infected with STD’s, not to mention the emotional play it has on the women and young girls. Statistics show prostitutes are women and girls who have been abused and who have mental and emotional problems and illnesses and they show them to have drug addictions so they sell their body to get money for their drugs. It is just awful and I think it should be illegal.

I’m Not Saying Prostitution Is A Good Thing, But I’m Not Saying It’s A Bad Thing. Some Girls Feel They have Nothing Left In Their Life Because Of Money Shortage. Usually When This Happens, They Like To Turn To Drugs And Possibly Suicide. What’s Worse? Sure There Is Always A Possibility Lurking With The Customers Because The Prostitutes May Not Know The Person, But That Kind O f Danger Can Come In Other Situations Too. The Reason I Feel It’s A Bad Thing Is Because You Could End Up With Some Sort Of Deadly STD Much Quicker Than To Not Have Been In The Business. And I Agree With The Fact That Maybe People Should Get After The Customers Because If Anything, They Are The Ones Doing Harm If The Woman Gets Hurt. There’s A Lot Of Different Ways To Look At It. The More Customers You Get Off The Street, The Better It Is For The Women To Possibly Look For A New Job Because Besides Money, They Are Getting A Customer Shortage. I’m Not Really Into This Subject Because I Don’t Pay Attention To This Kind Of Stuff, But That’s Basically My Look On It. It’s All About Learning A Lesson I Believe.

I like the approach sweden took when they legalized the selling, but criminalized the buying of prostitution. If enforcing this law reduces the demand of prostitution, there is chance to reduce the spread of sexualy transmitted diseases. Reading the statistics on sexualy transmitted diseases in america was scary to me. If America or even a majority of the states legalized prostitution, this country would go nuts. Not only that, the rates of sexualy transmitted diseases would probably double what they are now. So all in all, I feel America should stick with criminalizing the selling and buying of sex. To me, things seem pretty under control in that aspect of this country, I hope the government can keep it that way.

With all the prositutes out there getting arrested you would think that the victimless crime would decrease.Unforunatley it has become somewhat of a common career that has to be helped.I do agree with turning more towards the customers more then the sellers because the sellers are obviously there to make money and with no costumers hopefully they would get out of the business to decrease prostitution.At the same time though we should try and help prostitutes rather then ridicule them since the fact of the matter is that not only is that a job for them but a way of maybe escaping there own lives and problems that all of them have.

I also believe that prostitution is immoral and unethical. Although it is difficult to be eliminated, the governments cannot gives up their efforts to forbid it. I think the best way is to make it a crime to both of buyer and seller. We cannot blame prostitutes and forgive the customers, or try to reduce trafficking just by arresting the customers. I think both sides should be punished. The results of experiments in different countries indicated that no approach worked perfectly, so the government should try to combine different approaches together, enforcing the law firmly. By cracking down on pimps, customers and prostitutes, prostitutions can be reduced.

As wrong as it is from a moralities point of view, I also understand that not everyone has been raised with the same respect and norms as I lean towards the legalization of prostitution so the government can keep track of the prostitution rates, keep it as safe as possible, and also controlling their earnings. I agree with the article when it states that we’re not going to end the world’s oldest profession, but we can control many things and one of many choices is by legalizing it and have the government set a low income for prostitutes.

I think that prostitution is a horrible thing, and that whatever measure it takes to reduce the frequency of it happening is a good idea. So, I guess from the article I would have to go with Swedens approach. Their approach seemed to work the best, although everybody would have to keep in mind that not every country is not like sweden, so it will probably not work exactly the same. I think that every country should adopt the swedens approach, but mold it to fit that specific country better. I think that leagalizing prostitution is a big mistake, because then the amount of prostitution would more than likely go up significantly...

Before I read this article I would have said legalizing prostitution is the best method. After reading that trafficking underage girls flourished after the Netherlands legalized prostitution changed my mind. I would like for prostitutes to have a safer environment and to be checked out for STDs. If increased trafficking is a result of legalization then it’s not worth it. I don’t quit understand why trafficking would increase in the Netherlands when prostitution was legalized. I understand that gangs would want to on own a brothel and make good money. The Swedish approach seems to be the best. It is like a never ending cycle of abuse for these women, and the johns buying the sex should be the ones arrested for supporting it. The Swedish approach is working so why not give it a chance and see how it works in America

I agree you will never change the oldest profession, so I think the best approach is going after the Pimps and customers. Of course it would be useful to make all Prostitutes have a licence, one that states they are safe and pays taxes. I think "Red Light Districts" is a good idea as well. Prostitution is not going away no matter how we personally feel, that's why I feel Registering and Regulating is the best approach.

I think that prostitution is really unethical and just plain disgusting, i mean that is one of the reasons there are so many drugs and other diesies going around this country and the world, I think the thought of paying for sex is just pathetic and i would not want a prostitute that has had sex with hundreds of men, i think that private dancers and strip clubs should be the only thing that should be legal in the U.S. There are plenty of other job opportunities in the world then selling your body, which is the human temple for sex

Being that prostitution has been in existence for a long time, I would concur with the Swedish policy. By incarcerating the cliental I would assume less attempts would be made to purchase sex. There are several factors to this matter including sexually transmitted diseases, the trafficking of underage girls, and violence in general which is why the United States is not as lenient on the topic of selling sex as seen in other countries. None of which will ever be completely eliminated. Although, it would be unrealistic to attempt to have the states and federal government legally regulate such activity. As with nude “gentlemen clubs,” there are issues with zoning restrictions and crime increase associated with the clubs. I assume this would be identical if not worse if there were legalized brothels. Prostitution is not something I predict will ever be completely stopped, nor will there be a dramatic change in its acceptance within society.

I have always thought that prostitution should be legalized. I figure that if we can track the prostitutes we can enforce healthier practices. I agree with the comparison of buying sex and buying help with golf. Sex is seen as a sacred thing to be shared between married couples because that is what has come down from the Bible and passed along the centuries. It obviously is not held as sacredly as it used to be, but I don’t view it as any different than playing basketball, except for the risks involved. If we legalize prostitution, we can greatly reduce those risks. As for cracking down on child prostitution rings, I think that we need harsher punishment for the Johns.

It is indeed the sex trafficking that has rendered the legalization debate less controversial. Many observers say "so what if you legalize it? You have the legal ones in one street and the traffickers bring 17-year olds in another area." By the way, the average trafficked victim is much younger than the legal prostitute and this is why there is a good amount of clientele attracted towards the former.

One may say that the client will be attracted towards the legal prostitute beacuse she is being tested regularsly for STDs. This is what logic says. But how many Johns behave "logically" under these circumstances?

From what the press has released about the Spitzer affair, there you had a Harvard graduate seeking "unprotected" sex with a prostitute.

Sex trafficking is an $8 billion international business. Numbers can not be estimated because the business has gone totally underground. But the State Dept estimates that 14,500 to 17,500 human trafficking victims are brought into the United States yearly. The United States is among the top three destinations along with Japan and Australia. Once in the United States, traffickers most often set up shop in California, New York, Texas and Las Vegas. San Francisco is a major center. Many of the city’s Asian massage parlors have degenerated sex slave shops. Donna Hughes, who is a professor at Rhodes Island University and an expert on sex trafficking blames the city’s history on arresting prostitutes and not clients as well as the large immigrant population and the permissive attitudes towards sex. According to myredbook.com there are at least 90 massage parlors in San Francisco where sex is for sale. The site has more than 55,000 reviews of Northern California sex workers. Both John and law enforcement use it. The police say that there are about eight women working in a massage parlor which translates into 700 Asian sex masseuses operating in San Francisco, based on 90 illicit parlors listed on sex Web sites and on police interviews. Women are trafficked from Southeast Asia, the former Soviet Union and South America and have been lured through ads on lucrative jobs as models. The trafficker most of the times is a woman. The victim is slipped into the country, is put under house arrest inside homes, massage parlors, apartments and basements, where they learn that the job offer was a ploy. The trafficker has confiscated all travel documents until the woman pays off exorbitant sums. Often traffickers make sure that the debt is never repaid by charging for food, clothes and rent. Some fine the women for displeasing customers, being late to work etc.

I am not sure if any of these options will be effective, if you legalize it you will have an increase in the amount of girls that get involved with the trade and probably an increase in sexual crime. But if the start cracking down on the customers then what will those sick people do to get the satisfaction that is now much harder for them to get? What will those people start doing to fulfill those pleasures? Are they going to start taking it out on innocent women that are not even trying to sell their body? I don’t think there is just some simple answer.

I’m not sure if any approach will work all together but if I had to choose one it would be the arresting of the pimps and the customers. The people who pay for prostitutes are usually people that have a lot to loose like fathers or important business men. If they get arrested, hopefully they will be less likely to do it again because of the embarrassment of being in jail. I don’t think there is any kind of simple solution to solving the prostitution problem but something definitely needs to be done. But, it will be very difficult to put an end to the world’s oldest profession.

First of all I think prostitution is degrading to all human kind. It isn't very appealing to me. If I was forced to choose an approach, I would somewhat agree with prosecuting the prostitutes and pimps. The way I see it is if prosecution occurs then prostitution will lessen as the years go by. Customers won't take the chance of possibly getting punished and prostitutes will possibly find another good paying job that's more positive. If customers become ashamed of their reasoning for punishment or decide that the act is not worth being punished for, then they'll stop and then prostitution has no choice but to come to a halt or decrease in activity.

With regards to other cultures and norms in different countries, I have always felt that “stripping” or exotic dancing is an indecent profession especially for women, but prostitution is far more immoral and demeaning. I believe that any person can better support themselves without sacrificing dignity if they really intend to. I do not have the same opinion with the women in this industry who think that they have to stoop down this low in order to get by, assuming that they have no other option. I certainly do not think that legalizing prostitution is the right approach. I would say that the combination of Sweden’s policy that is geared towards customers and the New York law putting emphasis in cracking down on pimps and customers would be the most ideal approach. There are plenty of resources available for people seeking information about HIV, AIDS, and STDs, but perhaps a counseling program designed to assist former prostitutes head to the right direction and possibly consider other means of earning a living can be established. Having something like that would be essential to those seeking reformation in order to reduce the probability of just returning to the same type of occupation.

Out of the two policies, I would have to go with the Swedish policy. After reading the article and thinking about what goes on today in the U.S., I think that arresting the customers and pimps would lower the rate of prostitution. I am definitely on the side of protecting the girls. I realize that girls who are desperate for money will be forced to sell sexual acts in other ways, but I feel like this added hurdle will cut down on the number of young girls who are raped by men everyday. To be honest, it is hard for me to side with either policy because I feel like prostitution will always be around. I know that in any case, there will always be women who have to make a living in the only ways they know how and sex obviously sells.

While prostitution is one of the oldest jobs, I believe it can be stopped. We havent found a solid method yet, but the Swedish have found a temporary and, so far, effective method. It may have put their sex work underground but at least it is decreasing their buisness somewhat. And if the pay has to go down farther, then hopefully most women will stop. What bothers me the most is the trafficing of very young girls. Hopefully this method stops or at least declines protitution until there is a more moral and more effective method to stop it all together.

However many of the girls who work in legalized prostitution (not the trafficked ones) are not desperate for money. They are college graduates and they choose this job because they make more money. I just watched a short video on ABC NEWS titled What if prostitution were legal

In one scene a lady with a nursing degree explains her choice in black and white terms. A day of prostituting herself earns her the income of two weeks working as a nurse.

Another interesting point is that the John undergoes a medical test of some sort before the "encounter."

The ladies get tested weekly for STDs and monthly for HIV. The claim is that under Nevada's system, so far not one has tested positive for HIV.

Prostitution is an underground growing industry. Although the Swedish have a good foundation, it still needs more work and fundamental in order to be a success. Just like any other crime out there, aborting prostitution is not going to happen. We need bigger consequences for the customers and pimps. A lot of customer are family men, pastors, teachers, politicians, etc- maybe setting a web site for those arrested for buying sex to exploit them would make them think twice. It’s a cycle, women or should we say girls, are transported around the world to where prostitution is more profitable and less law to control the industry. Because prostitution is a victimless crime, there are far less demands on the government to implement a resolution, as in drug selling. Not everyone is looking at the whole picture regarding the aftermath of prostitutions. The customer themselves are the ones spreading HIV, AIDS, and sexual transmitted- Going from prostitute to prostitute and then to their significant others and/or to others in the community. This is one of the sources that contribute to epidemic on diseases.

Prostitution in my eyes is wrong and those who are subjected to it should be dealt with accordingly. I know that some people say lets legalize it so we can make money off it just as some say legalize marijuana. But this is a mistake legalizing it and allowing it to run wildly through our country would be devastating to our society and I think it would turn into total anarchy. We see that in other countries prostitution is legal but you have to look behind the screens at the living condition and the circumstances that have these people participating in such an act. I think that scrutiny would come from all aspects of western society if it were to become legalized in the U.S., so I stand not to legalize prostitution.

I believe the approach of legalizing prostitution to the extent of the new model such as that embraced by the Swedish plan is flawed. The Swedish plan purported to be so wonderful is one which decriminalizes the sale of sex but makes it a crime to buy sex, the aim being to prosecute customers not prostitutes. Legitimizing prostitution is not going to curb the health issues of AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases, nor is it going to restore the psychological health of the girls and women who pursue prostitution as an occupation. If one rationalizes the idea that a crime that is going to continue to flourish will be reduced as a threat to society if we just legalize certain components of it is just ridiculous. If we apply this “logic” why not just legalize crimes of petit theft, robbery,embezzlement, and even murder and rape. Perhaps theft should be okay if the reason the thief steals is categorized by justifications like poverty. Perhaps rape should be overlooked if the rapist can prove that the woman was careless in putting herself at risk or presented herself in public in such a way that she was really “asking for it.” Maybe murder should be excused if the reasons for the murder are categorized as justified or not justified by the level of anger of the murderer. Prostitution demeans the female sex, period. I am sorry but as a woman I believe that legalizing any occupation that demeans any sex or social class is morally wrong, despicable, and repugnant.

I think it would be a mistake to legalize prostitution. Our society needs to make sure it is known that what these people do is not acceptable.There, of course, is no solution to this ever-growing industry but I feel if we start focusing more on the pimps and customers and try intercepting the trafficing of prostutution it would be a better approach. One goal being to stop the spread of communicable diseases. If we can deter/stop the customers from going to the prostitutes and picking up diseases then we would cut back on the spread as a whole. The clients are the ones who are going back to their daily lives to spread the diseases to the unknowing.

I'm not going to pretend to know all the facts on this but everything I see on the news and papers on prostitution and how it’s treated lets it be this carried away. I do believe that the buyer should do as much time as the seller. I read an article on the newspaper not long ago and it talked about prostitution rings how they would spot out troubled teen, mainly of course young girls from 12 and up and when these “rings” were found or the "pimps" selling the girls services the person buying gets off fairly easily. Sure the person selling the teen’s services got what he deserved from what I had read but the person buying didn’t' this still leaves a pedophile willing to pay for sex from an unwilling girl. It is rape! Even if he is paying for it and as long as these people feel safe doing what they are doing this demand is never going to stop. And of course this does lead to the spread of AIDS, it does lead to murder and other crimes like kidnapping. In my opinion whenever a man is caught buying sex it should he should be treated just the same as the person selling it. And if it was a minor’s services being sold I think they should be charged with rape. It maybe one sided, and yes I do see that, but if you see it and say “hey the guy didn’t know she was kidnapped or a runaway forced into a prostitution ring so lets cut him some slack” then it wont stop.

I think prostitution should be illegal no matter what. But if I had to choose as to which approach I would agree with, I would probably agree with the method that was used in Swedan. It was stated that this method used by the Swedish had a higher, I guess "success" rate, than any other methods stated. So it is obvious that it has been "tested" so there is a chance that it might work elsewhere, where prostitution is an issue or becoming an issue. If this method will help decrease the number of prostitution then I would encourage it. The customers who are "buying" sex should be the one who are being arrested.

I absolutley think that prostitution is disgusting and totally immoral. God did not make sex to buy it up for it to be between a man and a woman who love eachother and are married, not some strangers that show up on the side of the street. If I had tp absolutely pick a mathod of slowing down prostitution, I would go with the Swedish one because it seems to have the most effect on prostitution. There has to be something that we can do to at least slow down, if not stop, prostitution. I do not believe that prostitution is a victim lesss crime either. If you have sex with a prostitute and one person ghets a disease that could kill them, that should be considered reckless homocide or something.

I personally think that prostitution is wrong and if there way to get rid of it all together, that would be the best way. Now in reality prostitution will always be around, so I think the best way to control it would be to legalize it. The first thing that would need to be done is to find a way to control it by licensing the women to keep the younger girls from the prostitution. Second there would need to be mandatory testing to keep the sexually transmitted diseases down. And finally there should be no need for pimps because they abuse the women and corrupt the situation a lot more. So I think prostitution is wrong but could be cleaned up a little more by legalizing it.

I disagree with many things in this article. First off, i think prostitution is morally wrong and shouldnt be acceptable under any circumstances. I dont understand why any woman would feel that selling her body is the only way to make a living. That is ridiculous. Its like saying not everyone can get an education, the oportunity to be educated is always there; whether or not you take that opportunity is up to you. With that being said, i dont think there is a reasonable excuse for prostitution. When i began reading this article and saw that one blogger compared hiring a pro to help him improve his golf game to hiring a prostitute to improve his sex. That is a ridiculous comparison, in my opinion. I would imagine most men dont go out and hire a prostitute thinking to themselves, "this will help me be a better lover". Riiiiiight. Most men who go to prostitutes are just looking for some quick sex with no strings attached. That is disgusting. Another blogger says, It was one of the best jobs i've ever had". I can't see why anyone would want a job where u sell your body to pay your rent or buy your drugs. I do not agree with the statement, "prostitution is inevitable, so we might as well legalize it." We may not be able to do away with it, but why give in and make it legal? This topic is very controversial, and im not quite sure which side i agree with. Although it would be better controlled if it were leagalized and the government regualted it, i dont like the thought of legalizing it and making it seem any less wrong than it truly is.

I think that women should be able to choose what they do with there body. Its been going on since the beginning of time so I dont think were going to stop it anytime soon. If we just lock up the buyers then we'll send the wrong message out. I think its a double stanard that wouldnt be fair and could work in the shirt run but maybe not the long. I know I said women should be able to do what they want but if its going to be illegal then I think both people should be arrested for the crime.

Personally I feel having sex with someone for money is morally wrong, however it is not my morals that are in question. They have been arresting prostitutes and customers for years to no prevail, it does no good. However, prostitution is legal in Guatemala at age 18, but it does not stop the recruiters from forcing girls into the sex industry at age 12 and 13. These disgusting pigs just save the children for their “special” clientele. Most of us do not think or worry ourselves with such things, but these things are not just happening in other countries. They are not just someone else’s problems. According to the University of Pennsylvania, more than 300,000 children are being sexually exploited here in the United States and many of these children have ended up at the Atlanta airport, which has become a hub for prostitution. This is only 402 miles away for us. And although I am not greatly concerned with what a consenting adult chooses to do with his or her body, I am scared that if fewer eyes are on prostitution, what happens to the children. What if the pigs of the world decide that they are not making enough money through selling the adults or movies or whatever, who do you think they will focus on? Our criminal justice system has already failed these children enough.

I believe prostitution can never be stopped. As stated it is one of the oldest professions and I think it should be legalized. If we legalize it then the government can regulate it like they do in foreign countries. I believe that prostitution is a personal choice and if that’s what you want to do then your going do it one way or another. If it is legalized and the prostitutes monitored it will lower STD/AIDS. I think prostitution is immoral and unethical but its going happen so we mind as well make it as safe as possible.

I don't agree with any approach. I also don't agree with prostitution being labeled as a "profession". It is demeaning of the title career. Most people work hard at their carer and prositutes are simply just easy women who make fast money. I feel it is trashy and it delivers negative influences to females and males of all ages. Women choose to become prostitues. If they were raised properly, with good morals, no female would want to sell her body to a man. Prostitution sends all the wrong messages to women and men. Why legalize prostitution when nothing good comes from it except a little cash. Instead one should be a decent person and work a little longer or find a part time job to make extra cash, atleast you will stil have respect for your body. Instead of accepting prostitution and giving in to the disgusting behavior of some people, we should let it be known that it is wrong and no matter what the beniefits, it should never be accepted.

Well to begin with I don’t agree with prostitution period, I think it is immoral. I really don’t agree with either of the sides. If it were legalized it would give the young girls the mentality to think that it is ok to sell their body for sex. Then again with that being said hopefully these young girls are mature enough and not take that route. But if I really had to choose a side then I think I would go with legalizing it. After all like the article mentioned prostitution is inevitable. At least that way it would help cut down on STDS and AIDS. It would be bettered controlled and regulated.

I think that if it was turned to a legal matter than I assume that the government will make sure to teach this girls about STDs and protection. I much rather have my hard earned tax money go to this education then to their mistakes. It is a hard topic and very difficult to know which way is the right way; but, if it is nothing new better to be exposed then to pretend it's not there. At least this way there will be some kind of control.

Honestly, even though I don’t condone prostitution it is inevitable. Therefore, I think that we should make it legal and tax the establishments heavily. This would clearly make the government much needed income. Not to mention, the stress on law enforcement would clearly decrease since they will not have to put anymore useless manpower on such crimes. The way I see it, it will be like an adult store, where you pay for the real thing. If that is the service X person wants, then by all means pay for it. There is already strip clubs, which in some cases could be considered prostitution. Why not just get it over with and be done with the taboo. Let responsible adults make the decision as to how they want to have a relationship. I’m sure the government will make plenty of money from taxation on the businesses.

RoxychicMurder is crime that has victims, but prostitution is a victimless crime as is drug use. Which means that the victimizer and the victim is the same person. (I am referring to the act of prostituting oneself, not to trafficking of course). This is why it has been debated. The thinking about victimless crimes is that if one wants to go to hell, he should be allowed to.

Of course there are many people who maintain that society has the right and the obligation to intervene and regulate personal behavior.

I do not agree with the legalization of prostitution in any way. To me this kind of act is immoral, disgusting, and should not in any way be accepted. Prostitution has been around for many years and probably will not ever be stopped. I agree with how the Swedish are controlling this problem. This kind of approach will not completely eliminate trafficking, but will definitely help reduce it. Their approach to this problem would work more sufficient if it had a better foundation. This could include greater consequences to both the customer and the prostitute. To me, this would then help the society as a whole and reduce the number of prostitutes in it.

Prostitution is immorally wrong. Our governemnt needs to crack down on those who have the demand for it; the pimps and customers. Harsher punishment will most likely keep the customers and pimps away from it. Personally, in my opinion, arresting prostitutors is a waste of jail space and tax payers dollars. They need to imprison the sickos who pay for this random hook-up

As much as I think prostitution is wrong, I still understand we will never be able to end it. So, as others have mentioned, doing what the Swedish did seems to me like the best bet. If we did end up cracking down on the customers, it will give the prostitutes less business. Cracking down on the prostitutes now doesn't seem like its teaching anyone a lesson. Cracking down on the pimps though seems like the most important idea. The pimps are what cause the most prostitution violence.

I believe that prostitution is very immoral and degrading to women. If I had to choose between the two different approaches, I would have to agree with using harsher punishments for pimps and customers. I think that majority of the customers you would find from prostitution have never been to jail before and would think twice before "buying" sex if there was a stricter punishment for their activities.

Well first of all I want to say that I am so against prostitution. I don’t think that there is any reason for anyone to have to sell themselves no matter how little of an education you have. If I did although have to choose a side I would want to side with the government. At least in this case, the women who want to sell themselves will be clean and it will always be looked after. It will also keep the prostitutes numbers down. The government will have a chance to regulate how many are out there and where they are.

I dont agree with prostitution one bit however it is never going to be stopped. No matter how hard anyone tries to stop it 100% realistically it wont be stopped. maybe legalizing it would help to make it safer and avoid the spreading of diseases going around the world. If people want to live their lives selling themselve for sex then that is there choice, sometimes you can't change people and their thoughts.

Legalize Prostitution! That is the approach I would have to take. This would minimize if not stop the crime of a prostitution ring or abuse done unto these young women. Most of the women have little to no education, or even worse runaways decent homes. Regulation and paying taxes on their income would help in the recovery of juvenille prostitutes and contribute to the nations financial needs. Afterall, there are legal dating guidlines that may include sex. What we need to protect is the minors who are entering this world of disgrace.Pimping women should be illegal. The punishment should be as severe as rape. The pimps are guilty of rape, robbing, and assult in every way. Are they not? The women that chose this temporal lifestyle should have something at the end, like social security and health benefits. Why put a sexual offender like a buyer of sex in jail when actual predators of children are being released into our communities!Keep the murderers and child predators behind bars for life and release the petty crime felons.Once again, try to find a place to live securely without a predator nearby. Keep the juvenilles off the street and in school, and keep the predators behind bars. Yes, prostitution is the oldest forgiven crime, but spreading aids, syphillis, ghonorea ect..., is not. Child prostitution should be detected before it occurs. And serial predators need to stay incarcurated.

Prostitution should stay as it is illegal. I don't agree with any approach. Regardless of what we do prostitution will always be around. There is nothing or nobody can do to change that. In the second hand, there is something we can do to reduce prostitution, if I had to choose an approach that I think it may work to reduce prostitution, it has to be the Swedish approach. We can go after the pimps and customer, because no pimp, no customer equal to no business (meaning no prostitude). Now how can keep customer from buying sex, well to my opinion we should start by increasing there sentence. No in the days if you get arrested due to buying sex you get a pad in the back and a please don't do it again. But, if we take a seriously and give them seriouly sentence, like a year in prision then I pretty sure you will see a reduction in men wanting to buy sex.

The legalization of prostitution is a very contraversial area. Even though some countries allow it and there are even some places in the U.S. that allow it, doesn't mean that it should be allowed completely within the U.S. It is very similar to the prohibition of alcohol. many people were killed manufacturing and distributing while it was illegal, but how many people die in modern times from alcohol; tens of thousands each year. Even though prostitution "could" be managed and governed; however, by allowing it legally it could just make a bad situation even worse. If a person would like to purchase sex, they should vacation in a place where it is legal but keep it out of the U.S.

In my opinion I do not agree with prostitution. I also do understand that by legalizing it and prosecuting the costumer we could lower the risk of disease and abuse, however I think that it is wrong to legalize prostitution in America. That would be sending out a message to all girls who feel as if they are not good enough for college or a good job that all they have to do is sell themselves. This would encourage this sort of behavior to be acceptable. It would also send a message out to men that since it is legal it is okay to cheat. I believe that we should not legalize prostitution for simple moral reasons.

I believe that the best policy to control and possibly stop prostitution is to crack down on the people that are buying the services of the prostitutes. If the people paying these prostitutes or pimps are given harsh punishment then I believe the prostitution business will suffer a loss in profits due to lack of customers, and prostitutes and pimps will be forced to lower their prices. I think eventually it will become unprofitable for the pimps and prostitutes because of lack of customers or because profits are too low. I am not saying that this will ultimately end the prostitution business and solve the problem, but I do think that it can at least make it tougher for a prostitute to make a living and possibly make them consider a different line of work.

This is a situation where you either pick the punch in the face or the punch in the stomach type of thing. I really dislike prostitution, very immoral. I've seen the effects of it on the girls that do it and I can't help but feel very sorry for them. But I digress, the situation I would support is the Swedish approach. Cracking down on the customer is the best way to go about it. The women are just trying to survive the only way they FEEL they can. Of course, there are many many different and legal ways these women can make it, but they don't see that as an answer. So, taking the punishment to the assholes (sorry if I can't say that here) that takes advantage of them is the most logical course of action. In the article, it quotes a prostitute of saying that because of this act, the demand has gone down... isn't that enough evidence that it is at least somewhat working? Go Sweden, keep up the good work, gents.

I agree with the cracking down on the customers rather than the prostitutes. Women/Men will always be able to try and sell themselves, but there might not always be people to buy. If the penalty for paying for sex is much harsher many people will probably back away from the whole business. I won't say it's not the prostitutes fault, but many of them are just not in a place to get away from what they do. It's sad really. So, I am all for throwing those in jail who are willing to pay for sex when they know it is illegal!

A joke that circulates around all of my friends is that prostitution is the oldest profession. However this joke is 100% true. prostitution has been around as long as people have walked the earth. There isn't much we can do about it. Even royal families trafficked their daughters to keep the rulers of allied nation "pure". So neither option will work. No matter what anyone does prostitution will always be around and prostitutes will always have customers. Its so ingrained in every society that prostitution(a form of crime) could possibly a necessary evil that society needs in order the establish place and order. No matter how you want to look at it, no one will ever be able to get rid of sex trafficking,so arrest all the customers and prostitutes you want and more will show up. Also legalizing it would open up a whole new bunch of problems. People wouldn't favor the legal prostitutes and would turn to the 17 and under girls.

The approach I would have to agree with is just legalizing it. Having and keeping a good track on prostitution and inspections of brothels like the do in Nevada would take a away alot of the sexually transmitted diseases. It could would also give a profit to the government. I know it might not have a great effect on slowing down trafficing, but to me living in America today with the amount of disease that's going around I find that the best solution.

I don't know that I agree with any of these approaches. I personally think that prostitution should be legalized.

I don't understand why people are still so OLD FASHIONED in thier thinking when it comes to this topic. For crying out loud! Sex is not a dirty word anymore. Take a look at what is shown on daytime t.v., much less at night. What about the adult stores, the strip clubs. SEX,SEX,SEX. It is what sells after all. Come on, the reality is it should be a personal choice. I also belive that if it were to be legalized it should be regulated. Taxes paid on income, health standards ect. Maybe by trying this approach, these women can make an HONEST living, have self respect, be able to provide for themselves and their children. Maybe then they will have enough self respect that they will not need drugs or pimps to controll their lives. Just a thought!

The approach that I would agree with would be the one from Amsterdam where at least it is a taxed and the government would benefit from it. But the only down side is that under aged girls would be trafficked by gangs. As long as they could pass a law like Swedes to prosecute the offenders and pimps for that crime so it wouldn’t be done again. If there were bad consequences it would have let people trafficking the underage girls. So I would have to create or agree with an in between method to the prostitution industry problem cause at least they would be health with systematic check to insure good health.

I’m against prostitution completely, but despite my opinion it still going to go on in the world with or without my approval. So I would agree to legalize it. Not only because it’s much safer, but because it going to be easier to regulate and easier to control. Plus it cut down on abuse women. The system seems to work very well in other countries, so why wouldn’t it work here. Well for one thing it cuts down on the disease spread in the United States. So me being against it will not benefit anyone in the unstable world we live in.

In my opinion, I do believe we should act against the prostitutes and the pimps. I believe prostitute is immoral, disgusting, and dirty. People who prostitute do not get any respect from the society no matter how much money they are making per day/night/hour. It is very wicked! I understand prostitution is been around and still around, but the government need to do something about it. Because some how it would manipulate the life of our young girls in the future. In addition, they will have in their mind selling their body for sex is a good thing to do, or is an easy way to get money, which is not good for them. And I don’t think they will even realize the side effects prostitute come with. For example, HIV, AID’S and may other STD’s.

I agree with daisydown23. Prostitution should not be legal in the first place. It's unhealty, immoral and unethical. They should get the pimps and the customers arrested. Because of them, there are so many prostitutes and STD's like AIDS, HIV and don't forget THE HERPS. Customers pay more money without protection. So think about it you pay more and look what you get in return. Is it really worth it. NO

This topic is a very tuff situation because individuals that take part or indulge in acts of prostitution feels theres nothing wrong with it. And feel to an honest certain extent its another way to survive or provide for self or others. Looking at prostitution as an occupation, at times wishing that they never was in or associated with it. But cant seem to get out, I personally and strongly disagree of prostitution to the fullest because its demeaning to those involve in it which is mostly woman teaching or promoting no self respect, abusement to the body risking it with diseases or losing it period, boys to even men having lack of respect towards woman looking at them as dogs or a supplier for their needs aside from sex for example most days you see men living off their spouse or woman. And according to the faith that i believe in christianity its wrong.

In my opinion, I don’t think the Swedish model is that great of an idea. If the goal is to attack prostitution, why limit yourself to only being able to attack half the problem? If the police want to do sting operations, it useless for them to pose as customers since they cant arrest the person anyway. I would think it would be much easier to spot a prostitute than a prospective patron and would only restrict law enforcement. The only way they would be able to make an arrest would be to lour someone in. then you start getting involved with entrapment. The individual could defend himself saying he would have never attempted to hire a prostitute if the police hadn’t placed her there. I bet over half would get away with it even after an arrest where as the police would be able to easily locate prostitutes and I think they would have less of a defense.

Even after reading this article i still believe that prostitution should be legalized. I think that we should give out license for girls to prositute and one of the requirments be that they get tested once or twice a month. I bleive this would reduce violence against prostitutes greatly and reduce the spread of S.T.D.'s. Morally i do not bleieve prostitution is right but, the fight against it is not a winnable battle just like the war against drugs. Legalization of both would make the world safer. I think the real promblem is the sex slaves. I think once we make prositution legal we should make the punishment for buying an unlicensed prostitude life in prison. We are sending people to prison for drugs and i think it is much worse to buy an underage helpless girl for your own sick pleasure. If we make the punishment that great then people will be more reluctant to buy them, especially when you have legal prositutes.

I don’t really agree with either approach, but if I was forced to choose one I would say I would legalize prostitution because no matter what even if it illegal and the police force starts cracking down on pimps and prostitutes there will still be people out there doing it and buying and selling prostitutes. So, why not make it legal and make certain guidelines to make it more safe on people cause they should makes all the girls get checked and make sure they cannot transmit diseases, and once there checked they can go and be a prostitute and once they find a man that will pay for them they should force a rule that the guy should have to use a condom. So I think they should legalize it because hopefully it will be safer and less harmful.

Prostitution has occurred all over the world for many years and the punishments for prostitution have not lowered the number of prostitutes; therefore, by lowering the number of prostitutes customers by threatening them with jail time and more consequences, prostitution may slowly decline over time. Prostitution, like the article says, is 51 times more dangerous than the second most dangerous occupation of working the counter of a liquor store. This fact has not changed the women's minds who are prostituting themselves, knowing that they could be hurt. I think by limiting the amount of people who are buying the prostitutes, the prostitution will come to a halt.

I believe that prostitution should be legalized because, lets face it no matter how many people we arrest criminals are still going to commit crime. I feel as though we should get rid of the pimps because those are the individuals that are starving for money and will go to any extent to harm to get their pay. Just like Nevada they should regulate it. Make the prostitutes comply with monthly tests as well as pay them and tax them on their work. I read that prostitution is one of the oldest jobs in our history that’s just crazy. I believe that just letting it go and regulating this issue would also help our jails from filling up which would be cheaper for our government.